Lawmakers, staff may get Obamacare exemption, Goodlatte to drop Ag-worker bill today, Hill scrambles to fix flight delays, Poll: Ayotte takes hit after gun vote, trivia

(swong@politico.com or @scottwongDC)

LAWMAKERS, STAFFERS MAY GET OBAMACARE EXEMPTION; A DOUBLE STANDARD? – John Bresnahan and Jake Sherman report for the hometown paper: “Congressional leaders in both parties are engaged in high-level, confidential talks about exempting lawmakers and Capitol Hill aides from the insurance exchanges they are mandated to join as part of President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul, sources in both parties said. The talks — which involve Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio), the Obama administration and other top lawmakers — are extraordinarily sensitive, with both sides acutely aware of the potential for political fallout from giving carve-outs from the hugely controversial law to 535 lawmakers and thousands of their aides. Discussions have stretched out for months, sources said. A source close to the talks says: ‘Everyone has to hold hands on this and jump, or nothing is going to get done.’

– “Yet if Capitol Hill leaders move forward with the plan, they risk being dubbed hypocrites by their political rivals and the American public. By removing themselves from a key Obamacare component, lawmakers and aides would be held to a different standard than the people who put them in office. Democrats, in particular, would take a public hammering as the traditional boosters of Obamacare. Republicans would undoubtedly attempt to shred them over any attempt to escape coverage by it, unless Boehner and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) give Democrats cover by backing it. There is concern in some quarters that the provision requiring lawmakers and staffers to join the exchanges, if it isn’t revised, could lead to a ‘brain drain’ on Capitol Hill, as several sources close to the talks put it.

–“The problem stems from whether members and aides set to enter the exchanges would have their health insurance premiums subsidized by their employer — in this case, the federal government. If not, aides and lawmakers in both parties fear that staffers — especially low-paid junior aides — could be hit with thousands of dollars in new health care costs, prompting them to seek jobs elsewhere. Older, more senior staffers could also retire or jump to the private sector rather than face a big financial penalty.” http://politi.co/ZJDfkg

GOP LEADERS YANK OBAMACARE BILL – Jake Sherman writes for POLITICO: “House Republican leadership abruptly pulled a health care bill from the floor after concerns from conservatives that it extended President Barack Obama’s health care law. The legislation, which was championed by Majority Leader Eric Cantor, had opposition from all corners of the conservative universe. It’s a blow to the Virginia Republican, who touted the ‘Helping Sick Americans Now Act’ and visited the Republican Study Committee meeting Wednesday to try to move votes. The legislation attempts to transfer money from what Republicans call a ‘slush fund’ — it’s actually a preventative disease account — to create high-risk pools for sick Americans. The Obama administration said Tuesday the president would likely veto the bill. …

– “The Club for Growth, the Heritage Foundation and tea party groups have urged Republican lawmakers to oppose the bill, which was authored by GOP Reps. Joe Pitts of Pennsylvania, Michael Burgess of Texas and Ann Wagner of Missouri. Club for Growth said it would include this vote in its annual rating of members of Congress. Brent Bozell, a tea party leader, dubbed the bill ‘CantorCare’ in a news release Tuesday. Republican lawmakers privately fretted that the bill would bolster Obamacare, which the GOP has long tried to dismantle.” http://politi.co/13uwB1s

– The New York Times’ Jonathan Weisman’s take on Cantor: His efforts to remake the GOP into a kinder, gentler party aren’t going so well: http://nyti.ms/ZQsfxF

BOEHNER-LED COST-CUTTING SAVES $ 400M IN HOUSE – Susan Davis writes for USA Today: “The House of Representatives will spend 15% less on its own operations this year than it did three years ago under a cost-cutting effort launched by Speaker John Boehner that is on pace to have saved taxpayers more than $ 400 million by the end of this year. When Republicans took control of the House in January 2011, Boehner, the new speaker, said cutting House spending would be a priority. Since then, House lawmakers have seen a nearly 20% decrease in their office budgets. Three years ago, the average lawmaker had an annual $ 1.5 million budget, which is down to $ 1.2 million. Those budgets — which vary by office — cover everything from staff salaries to district office rent and bottled water. The cuts trimmed $ 58 million from House costs in fiscal year 2011, $ 143 million in fiscal year 2012, and are on track to save $ 205 million through fiscal year 2013 when the across-the-board government spending cuts known as sequestration are factored in to the savings, according to Boehner’s office. The operating budget for the House in 2010 was $ 1.37 billion; that number has been shaved to $ 1.16 billion for 2013.” http://usat.ly/ZOMX1Q

GOODLATTE EXPECTED TO DROP HIS AG-WORKER BILL TODAY – A few highlights from House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte’s bill, which he shared with stakeholders last night:

– The maximum stay for H-2C workers in temporary or seasonal jobs is 18 months, after which an H-2C worker must remain outside the U.S. for a period equal to at least 1/6 of the duration of their stay on an H-2C visa. For H-2C workers in jobs that are themselves permanent, the requirement to remain outside the U.S. after the first 18 month period is waived.

– An employer must place a local job order with the state workforce agency serving the local area where the H-2C worker will be employed. The state workforce agency shall post the job order on its official agency website for a minimum of 30 days and the Secretary of Labor shall include links to the official websites of all state workforce agencies on a single webpage on its website.

– Aliens in the U.S. as of the date of introduction of the Act who are unlawfully present may participate in the H-2C program. Until the implementation of the H-2C program, such aliens may lawfully work in agriculture in the U.S.

– The total number of aliens who may newly receive H-2C status is limited to 500,000 a year. The Secretary of Agriculture has the authority to raise or lower this cap based on a number of considerations. Bill summary: http://bit.ly/15PzvSr Bill text: http://bit.ly/YUixuY

– The Sierra Club has endorsed comprehensive immigration reform, POLITICO’s Anna Palmer and Darren Samuelsohn report: http://politi.co/ZJCGXO

CAPITOL HILL SCARMBLES FOR FIX TO FLIGHT DELAYS – Adam Snider, Burgess Everett and Kathryn A. Wolfe report for the hometown paper: “Momentum on the Hill is building toward a possible solution to the hours-long delays plaguing the nation’s airports. Many questions remain unanswered, but the cascading woes in the skies combined with the rising partisan rhetoric about budget cuts have pushed top senators from both parties to look for a compromise. And the White House appears to be softening on its previous insistence that it wants a broad solution to the entire sequester — not just the portion that affects the FAA. The Senate’s top aviation leaders met for 40 minutes Wednesday with Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and FAA head Michael Huerta to discuss a solution. LaHood and Senate Commerce Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) declined to offer details, though Rockefeller said the talks focused on the air traffic controller furloughs that started on Sunday. …

– “It’s still not clear what that solution might be, though a bill dealing with the FAA’s air traffic controllers might be on the fast track. Both chambers of Congress are set to take a one-week vacation next week, further complicating — or providing an incentive for — a possible fix.” http://politi.co/17XJOTP

WSJ, A1, 1-col above the fold, “Senators Seek Way To Ease FAA Cuts,” By Kristina Peterson, Jack Nicas and Susan Carey: http://on.wsj.com/XYTeub

LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS: ELVIS IMPERSONATOR MAY HAVE BEEN FRAMED – Kimberly Kindy and Julie Tate report for the Washington Post: “Federal authorities descended Wednesday on a shuttered martial arts studio in Mississippi as the FBI sought to reinvigorate its investigation into ricin-laced letters sent this month to the White House, a U.S. senator and a county judge. James Everett Dutschke, 41, the owner of the studio, saw attention shift to him after an earlier suspect in the case told authorities and news media that Dutschke may have framed him. Law enforcement officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, confirmed that they believe the earlier suspect, Paul Kevin Curtis, 45, may have been framed. Charges against Curtis were dropped Tuesday and he was released from jail. Law enforcement officials would not say whether they believe Dutschke is responsible for the ricin letters. Dutschke’s attorney said Curtis and Dutschke are acquaintances and that the two men were last in contact three years ago. Dutschke has denied any involvement with the ricin letters and said through his attorney that he has no malice toward Curtis. …

– “FBI spokesman Paul Bresson declined to comment about the arrest and the subsequent release of Curtis, and did not respond to questions about Dutschke. ‘The investigation remains ongoing,’ Bresson said. Charlie Watson, who owns a business near Dutschke’s former martial arts studio, said that several unmarked dark-blue trucks with mounted sirens pulled into the strip mall where the studio is located around 8 a.m. Wednesday. He said they were still there, in addition to several other police cars and a hazardous materials truck, at 6:30 p.m.” http://wapo.st/15Pn2Ov

– Only one of the three letters made it into the hands of its intended targets, 80-year-old Mississippi judge Sadie Holland, The AP reports. Holland is the common link between the two men probed in the case. http://wapo.st/17Wl7nZ

CIA WANTED BOSTON BOMBER ON WATCH LIST – Greg Miller reports on A1 of the Washington Post: “The CIA pushed to have one of the suspected Boston Marathon bombers placed on a U.S. counterterrorism watch list more than a year before the attacks, U.S. officials said Wednesday. Russian authorities contacted the CIA in the fall of 2011 and raised concerns that Tamerlan Tsarnaev, who was killed last week in a confrontation with police, was seen as an increasingly radical Islamist who could be planning to travel overseas. The CIA request led the National Counterterrorism Center to add Tsarnaev’s name to a database known as the Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment, or TIDE, that is used to feed information to other lists, including the FBI’s main terrorist screening database.  The CIA’s request came months after the FBI had closed a preliminary inquiry into Tsarnaev after getting a similar warning from Russian state security, according to officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the matter.

–“The disclosure of the CIA’s involvement suggests that the U.S. government may have had more reason than it has previously acknowledged to scrutinize Tsarnaev in the months leading up to the bombings in Boston. It also raises questions why U.S. authorities didn’t flag his return to the United States and investigate him further after a seven-month trip he took to Russia last year.” http://wapo.st/XYQ1uM

** IUPAT members and leaders will be on Capitol Hill today talking about the continued need for workers and contractors to be certified and trained in lead paint safety in order to prevent the spread of lead poisoning and contamination on or off the jobsite(s). Find out more here: http://www.goiupat.com

GOOD THURSDAY MORNING, APRIL 25, 2013, and welcome to The Huddle, your play-by-play preview of the day’s congressional news. Send tips, suggestions, comments, complaints and corrections to swong@politico.com. If you don’t already, please follow me on Twitter @scottwongDC.

My new followers include @Good4Hearts and @DanaPerino.

TODAY IN CONGRESS – The Senate meets at 9:30 a.m. and will recess at 10:30 a.m. for one hour for a senators-only briefing. At 11:30 a.m., the Senate will resume consideration of the Marketplace Fairness Act.  Unless an agreement is reached, the Senate will have a cloture vote on the bill Friday morning.

The House meets at 10 a.m. with first and last votes expected between 1:30 and 2:30 p.m. on the Responsible Helium Administration and Stewardship Act.

AROUND THE HILL – Rep. Jan Schakowsky and others speak on POLITICO’s Emerging Tax Leaders panel at 8 a.m. at the Newseum. House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte and Rep. Trey Gowdy speak on immigration reform at 9 a.m. in HVC Studio A.  Former Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman and Sens. Mark Begich, Debbie Stabenow, Chris Coons, Heidi Heitkamp, Tim Johnson, Mark Pryor and Jon Tester participate in Senate Democrats’ 2^nd Rural Summit at 9:30 a.m. in Dirksen G-50. 

Reps. Trent Franks, Jim Costa, Ed Royce and others speak on the Victims’ Rights Amendment at 10 a.m. at the House Triangle. Also at 10, Rep. Mike Honda and national education experts speak on education reform at the National Press Club, 529 14t St. NW.  House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi holds an on-camera briefing with reporters at 10:45 a.m. in HVC Studio A.

Rep. Luis Gutierrez participates in a vigil to recognize families separated by deportations, at 11:30 a.m. outside of the Hart Building. Reps. Karen Bass and Joe Courtney speak on student loan debt at 2 p.m. at the House Triangle. Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Ed Royce meets with King Abdullah of Jordan at 4 p.m. in Rayburn 2172.

IN HAWAII DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY, IT’S ONCE AGAIN OBAMA VS. CLINTON – Roll Call’s Kyle Trygstad explains: “The lingering fallout from the 2008 presidential primaries could rear its head in another congressional contest — this time in Hawaii. The two Democrats who will face off in next year’s Senate primary took leading roles on opposite sides of the primary that pitted Barack Obama versus Hillary Rodham Clinton. In the Aloha State — where politics is especially personal — every possible division between appointed Sen. Brian Schatz and Rep. Colleen Hanabusa will likely spill out in the 2014 special election. Schatz’s team plans to use this to its advantage — including parlaying his role in helping nominate the president in his home state. … Like many other states in 2008, the local party in Hawaii was split into two camps. Schatz, then a former state representative, was the political director and top spokesman for the Obama campaign. Meanwhile, Hanabusa, who was then the state Senate president, served as Clinton’s state spokeswoman.” http://bit.ly/Y6lzks

HEITKAMP DEFENDS GUN VOTE – Manu Raju writes for POLITICO: “Heidi Heitkamp’s office was flooded with calls from North Dakotans in the run-up to last week’s high-profile vote to expand background checks on gun purchasers. The overwhelming consensus: Vote no. In an interview in her office this week, the freshman Democrat defended the biggest vote of her young Senate career, when she joined with three other Democrats and most Senate Republicans to oppose expanding background checks during commercial gun sales. ‘I think I always had a reputation as somebody who will listen, somebody who is pretty independent-minded but also believes that at the end of the day, you got to listen to your constituents,’ Heitkamp said. ‘In this office, the calls literally were before the last day at least 7 to 1 against that bill. This was after a series of very extensive ad campaigns done in my state saying call me and tell me to support it.’

– “Heitkamp’s opposition came after intense lobbying by President Barack Obama’s chief of staff, former Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and her husband, Mark Kelly — and families of the victims from the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School last year. The vote turned Heitkamp from an unexpected victor of a 2012 Senate race to a liberal punching bag, fielding a sharp jab from Obama’s former chief of staff, Bill Daley, who demanded a refund of his campaign donation. It all amounted to an unusual amount of attention for a woman who hailed from a town of 90 people, hadn’t held an elected office for a dozen years and is so new to the Senate that she is still cramped in a small ground-level temporary office. But Heitkamp’s vote last week serves as a stark reminder that Obama’s domestic agenda rests largely on wooing both Republicans and red-state Democrats who are unafraid to buck their party.” http://politi.co/YSelvL

SCOTT BROWN FLIRTS WITH NEW HAMPSHIRE – James Hohmann writes for POLITICO: “Scott Brown has the look of a man not quite sure what to do with himself. Since losing his Senate seat in November, the Republican flirted with but then decided against running again in Massachusetts, signed up as a commentator for Fox News and landed a gig at a law firm with a lobbying practice. Now he’s again looking at a possible run … in New Hampshire. Brown is serious enough that he’s making at least five trips to the state in a one-month window, including last Saturday for a speech to a county GOP luncheon in Hanover and an appearance at the New Hampshire Young Republicans convention. The Republican senatorial campaign arm, looking to expand the 2014 map, has promoted the buzz, and Karl Rove has talked him up on cable. Democratic Sen. Jeanne Shaheen is favored to win a second term in the swing state, but a Brown entry — the odds are still probably less than 50-50 — would throw the race into flux.” http://politi.co/13vlKEh

SENATORS ASK OBAMA IF ASSAD HAS USED CHEMICAL WEAPONS – Senators John McCain (R-Ariz.), Carl Levin (D-Mich.), Bob Corker (R-Tenn.), Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.), Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) and Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) fired off a letter to President Obama Wednesday asking him whether the Assad regime – or Syrian elements associated with, or supported by, the Assad regime – has used chemical weapons in Syria since the current conflict began in March 2011: “[T]he senior military intelligence analyst of the Israel Defense Forces, Brigadier General Itai Brun, stated recently that the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad ‘has increasingly used chemical weapons’ against civilians in Syria. This statement follows the letter sent last week by the French and British governments to the Secretary General of the United Nations, in which they reportedly claim to have credible evidence that chemical weapons have been used in Syria. … Like you, we also view the potential use of chemical weapons in Syria as a matter of vital importance for U.S. and international security, with significant implications for U.S. policy toward the conflict in Syria.”

HARKIN DELAYS VOTE ON LABOR NOMINEE PEREZ – Sam Hananel writes for the AP: “Senate Democrats have delayed a confirmation vote on Labor Secretary-nominee Thomas Perez after Republicans threatened to use a separate hearing to criticize his handling of a whistleblower case. A vote in the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee that had been set for Thursday has been pushed back to May 8. Committee Chairman Tom Harkin of Iowa said he was concerned that Republicans would use the separate hearing as a forum to attack Perez in his absence. Harkin canceled the hearing on federal whistleblower laws, which also was set for Thursday.” http://yhoo.it/11mLCRd

AYOTTE SEES DIP IN POLLS AFTER GUN VOTE – Kevin Cirilli reports for POLITICO: “Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-N.H.) is facing a backlash after voting against the background check proposal last week. Ayotte has a 44 percent approval rating and a 46 percent disapproval, according to a Public Policy Polling poll released Thursday. That’s a net 15 percentage point drop since October, the last time PPP polled on her when she had a 48 percent approval and a 35 percent disapproval. … Fifty percent of New Hampshire voters say Ayotte’s voting ‘No’ on the legislation to expand background checks will make them less likely to support her in a future election — only 23 percent saw it as a positive. She’s up for reelection in 2016.” http://politi.co/11GhNvt

WEDNESDAY’S TRIVIA WINNER – Jonathan Orr and Jim Brewer both correctly answered seconds apart that former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Wilmer “Vinegar Bend” Mizell represented North Carolina in the House.

TODAY’S TRIVIA – Ross Kapilian has today’s question: Who was the first British monarch to visit the U.S., and which president hosted him/her? First to correctly answer gets a mention in the next day’s Huddle. Email me at swong@politico.com.

GET HUDDLE emailed to your Blackberry, iPhone or other mobile device each morning. Just enter your email address where it says “Sign Up.” http://www.politico.com/huddle/

** The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in coordination with state departments of health have found a higher percentage of construction workers’ children, especially those less than six years of age; have elevated BLLs when compared to age-specific averages for the United States and neighbors’ children. Lead paint regulations and laws, especially the “Lead: Renovation, Repair, and Painting (LRRP) rule”, are one of many safety valves to prevent the harmful effects of this toxic chemical from our society. By ensuring that workers and contractors are certified and trained in lead safe work practices we can prevent the spread of lead poisoning and contamination on or off the jobsite(s). Trained workers and contractors can in a cost efficient manner remove the hazardous chemical from homes, and public buildings to protect or communities. Find out more here:  http://www.goiupat.com

POLITICO – Top 10 – The Huddle

Lawmakers, staff may get Obamacare exemption, Goodlatte to drop Ag-worker bill today, Hill scrambles to fix flight delays, Poll: Ayotte takes hit after gun vote, trivia

TAX DAY, Durbin fundraising signals run for reelection, Schism in gun lobby over Manchin-Toomey bill, Rubio"s TV blitz, Giffords on Hill, Joe Miller explores second Senate bid

(swong@politico.com or @scottwongDC)

With an assist from Manu Raju.

DURBIN RAISES $ 736K IN Q1, SIGNALS RUN FOR REELECTION – Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin has filed campaign finance reports showing he’s raised significant cash in the first quarter, a strong sign the 68-year-old Illinois Democrat is running for a fourth term in 2014. From a Democratic source familiar with the figures: “Even before officially announcing his candidacy for reelection, Senator Dick Durbin, raised nearly three quarters of a million dollars in the first quarter of 2013 and has $ 3.23 million cash on hand. Holding only about a dozen events over the first quarter, Durbin’s haul is impressive and shows he has continued to be a strong fundraiser even without a formal campaign announcement. In total, Durbin raised $ 736,166.29 in the first quarter from 1,888 donors – 1091 of whom were first-time contributors to the Senator. Nearly 70% of his contributions were under $ 100 and more that 70% of his contributors were from Illinois. Durbin continues to grow his strong grassroots support across Illinois. Even without a formal campaign announcement, Durbin is in a strong financial position at the start of the 2014 cycle.” http://bit.ly/Yp8wWg

A SCHISM IN GUN LOBBY OVER MANCHIN-TOOMEY BACKGROUND CHECKS BILL – Tom Hamburger and Ed O’Keefe write on A1 of the Washington Post: “In anticipation of Senate votes this week on a proposed expansion of criminal background checks for firearms sales, one gun rights organization broke with the powerful National Rifle Association on Sunday to urge support for a compromise drafted by Sens. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) and Patrick J. Toomey (R-Pa.). The endorsement by the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms — which calls itself the second-largest gun rights organization in the country, behind the NRA, claiming 650,000 members and supporters — is one of several moves over the past few days that have provided a boost to the hopes of proponents of background checks. While leading gun-control advocates — including President Obama and New York Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg (I) — back the bipartisan proposal, the announcement of support Sunday from the Citizens Committee reveals that substantial parts of the bill are viewed as ‘wins’ for the gun lobby, including provisions that would prohibit a government registry of gun ownership and make it easier to transport and market weapons across state lines.

– “Though news of a split in the usually unified gun lobby cheered gun-control advocates, the gun lobby can count other probable wins in the current debate, such as the likely defeat of legislation to limit military-style assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines. Now, an expansion of background-check requirements for gun sales is considered the most likely major achievement. … The compromise measure, drafted by Toomey and Manchin, would require background checks for currently exempt online and gun-show sales but not for most other private transactions.

– “There were other signs of momentum on gun-control legislation over the weekend, including a tentative expression of support for the Toomey-Manchin compromise on Sunday from Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), an endorsement by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), and indications of backing from several House Republicans, including some who have had previous endorsements from the NRA. Officially, only three Republican senators — Toomey, Collins and Mark Kirk (Ill.) — have said they plan to vote for the Manchin-Toomey agreement. Democratic aides say the bill will need the backing of at least six Republican senators to pass. The measure still has a long and tortuous path, with dozens of amendments expected. The Senate is scheduled to begin formal debate Tuesday by first considering the plan to expand the gun background-check program.” http://wapo.st/17B6ARk

MANCHIN AND TOOMEY GET THE ‘SNL’ TREATMENT. Watch here as they open the show: http://bit.ly/ZvN3Kv

New York Times, A1, “Rifts in Both Parties Complicate Odds for Gun Measure,” By Jennifer Steinhauer and Jonathan Weisman: http://nyti.ms/ZkHPoZ

FEWER AMERICANS VIEW INCOME TAXES AS FAIR – Gallup: “This Tax Day, 55% of Americans regard the income taxes they have to pay as fair, the lowest percentage Gallup has measured since 2001. The results are based on Gallup’s Economy and Personal Finance poll, conducted April 4-7, and annually since 2001. The recent high in Americans’ perceptions that their taxes were fair, 64%, came in 2003, after President Bush signed tax cuts into law and weeks after the Iraq war began.” http://bit.ly/17cYWJL

IS WASHINGTON SPENDING YOUR TAX DOLLARS WISELY? – Bankrupting America, a project of Public Notice, is out with a new tax day video, “Your Tax Dollars At Work,” asking everyday Americans whether they feel Washington is spending their tax dollars wisely. The video highlights concerns for the way money is being spent in Washington, including reactions to recent headlines exposing real government waste. Watch it here:  http://bit.ly/116zt1s Fact sheet: http://bit.ly/103xVLN

RUBIO IS EVERYWHERE: SENATOR DOES SEVEN SUNDAY SHOW INTERVIEWS – Ginger Gibson reports for POLITICO: “Sen. Marco Rubio on Sunday began his public campaign to win over conservative support for overhauling the nation’s immigration laws, appearing on a record-setting seven network news programs. Rubio offered a finely calibrated pitch designed to alleviate conservative concerns about reform. He pushed back against claims that a pathway to citizenship is tantamount to amnesty. He rebutted arguments that an agreement would impose dramatic new costs on taxpayers. And he defended the changes as necessary to keep the border secure. ‘What we have in place today, the status quo, is horrible for America,’ the Florida Republican said on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press.’ …

– “Rubio’s appearances launch a pivotal week in the efforts of the Gang of Eight, the bipartisan group of senators working on immigration legislation. The group is expected to unveil its compromise plan on Tuesday, bringing an end to months of speculation about what the final bill will look like. In addition to appearing on the usual five network Sunday morning programs — on CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN and Fox — Rubio also appeared on Univision and Telemundo. The high-profile push from Rubio is sure to stoke talks that he’s positioning for a run for president in 2016. He’s considered a favorite in the field of potential Republican candidates.” http://politi.co/Zqj3k7

RUBIO’S IMMIGRATION GAMBLE: A1, Washington Post, “Rubio takes big risk on immigration legislation: Senator’s endorsement of bipartisan plan could prove costly in 2016,” By David Nakamura: “[I]n many ways, the senators’ negotiations, behind the scenes and in public, have hinged on a party of one. Rubio, the tea party favorite whose parents emigrated from Cuba, has been considered the most crucial player all along. Although he has seemed to waver at times, his full-throated endorsement of the bill Sunday, in a marathon round of seven television interviews, put at ease a group of colleagues who have been working hard to ensure he stays the course. [Dick] Durbin wasn’t the only one who reached out to Rubio. The senator from Florida was added to the group after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) made clear to Graham and McCain that Rubio’s participation would be critical to winning conservative support. President Obama phoned Rubio, who was traveling in Israel, after the senator dismissed details of an administration immigration plan leaked to the media in February. And Schumer called Rubio two weeks ago to confirm his support after the Republican publicly expressed skepticism about the pace of negotiations.

– “By joining the cause, the potential 2016 presidential candidate has set himself down a politically risky path — one that could pay big dividends but is likely to become even more treacherous after details of the bill become public. Shortly after Rubio’s talk-show appearances, NumbersUSA, a conservative anti-immigration group, issued a statement denouncing the ‘Obama-Rubio-Schumer’ deal. And Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) charged that his colleagues had ‘abandoned’ a pledge to make border security the highest priority.” http://wapo.st/17cQI4n

BUSINESSES GEAR UP FOR IMMIGRATION FIGHT – Anna Palmer reports for POLITICO: “The business community has long supported the idea of immigration reform — particularly the high-tech sector and the construction industry, which badly need the workers. What they don’t support are some of the specifics leaking out on a new immigration reform proposal expected Tuesday from the Gang of Eight. Now, companies and trade groups — that have been pressuring the key Senate negotiators — are preparing to unleash their lobbying forces broadly on Capitol Hill in hopes of securing changes to the package. And that could spell trouble for the bill since any significant change to even a single element could scuttle the delicately reached bargain, leaving final passage of a comprehensive immigration reform bill in serious jeopardy.” http://politi.co/17afh1X

DEM GROUP HITS GOP SENATORS ON IMMIGRATION – The Bridge Project, the Democratic-aligned American Bridge 21^st Century’s 501(c)(4),  is releasing a report today highlighting what it calls past extreme comments on immigration and the anti-immigrant funders of some of the key conservatives in the Senate, including members of the Gang of Eight: Marco Rubio, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Jeff Flake, Ted Cruz, Mitch McConnell, John Cornyn, David Vitter and Chuck Grassley.  The report, titled “Barriers to Reform: The anti-immigrant and extremist money blocking progress in the Senate,” states: “As immigration reform moves forward in the Senate the success of any legislation will depend on the cooperation of conservative lawmakers with troubling histories on the issue.  However, it is not only their past policy positions and quotes that are disturbing.  These key conservative Senators also share a history of campaign contributors who also fund extremist anti-immigrant organizations, including those labeled as hate groups by the Southern Poverty Law Center.” Read the report here: http://ab21.org/BarriersToReform

DESPITE GANGS, McCONNELL IN NO MOOD FOR BIPARTISANSHIP – John Bresnahan and Jake Sherman report for the hometown paper: “Mitch McConnell still hasn’t gotten over December’s traumatic fiscal cliff showdown. The Senate minority leader has signaled privately that he has no interest in sitting in the same room as Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) to discuss a possible ‘grand bargain’ on budget and tax issues, Senate insiders tell POLITICO. McConnell is fine with talking to Obama — just talking at this point — but he doesn’t want Reid there when it happens. Such is life in Congress, where hope of bipartisanship is giving way to the same old toxic relations. From the outside, the Senate appeared to have the bipartisan thing down this spring: so called ‘gangs’ of senators have hashed out agreements on guns and immigration. President Barack Obama has had two dinners with Senate Republicans and traveled up to the Hill to meet with lawmakers from both chambers. But the good feelings have really been only in the Senate, and only among a minority of Republicans to boot. Bad blood remains between party leaders and the national partisan realities haven’t changed.

– “[R]elationships among the other 98 senators will be tested when voting begins on the controversial gun and immigration measures — starting with this week’s expected vote on expanding background checks for firearms purchases. McConnell plans to pull out all the stops to block the bill, and GOP senators are blasting any immigration plan that they say smells of ‘amnesty.’” http://politi.co/17aczJO

VOTE FOR POLITICO – POLITICO has been nominated for a Webby Award in the politics category. Readers can vote for us in the People’s Voice Award here: http://wbby.co/b0wx. Voting ends April 25.

** This Thursday – FORUM ON THE FUTURE OF HOUSING. Join Zillow, Progressive Policy Institute and American Action Forum at the Knight Conference Center at the Newseum, 8:00 am-12:30 pm. FREE registration: http://zlw.re/ZillowForum.

GOOD MONDAY MORNING, APRIL 15, 2013, and welcome to The Huddle, your play-by-play preview of the day’s congressional news. Send tips, suggestions, comments, complaints and corrections to swong@politico.com. If you don’t already, please follow me on Twitter @scottwongDC.

My new followers include @AnselCarpenter and @James_Barba.

TODAY IN CONGRESS – The House is in at noon with votes expected around 6:30 p.m. Legislation considered under suspension of the rules include the GAO Improvement Act, Federal Employee Tax Accountability Act, The Contracting and Tax Accountability Act and District of Columbia CFO Vacancy Act.

The Senate is in at 2 p.m. and will consider the nominations of Beverly O’Connell to be U.S. District Judge for the Central District of California and Derrick Watson to be U.S. District Judge for the District of Hawaii. At 5:30 p.m., there will be a roll call vote on the O’Connell nomination.

AROUND THE HILL – House Democratic Caucus Chairman Xavier Becerra, Reps. Hank Johnson and Pete Gallego and Voto Latino speak on immigration reform at 10 a.m. at the House Triangle. From noon to 3 p.m., Sen. Mike Lee and Reps. Justin Amash, Mick Mulvaney, Mike Pompeo and Tom Price address over 1,000 FreedomWorks activists at Upper Senate Park to launch “The New Fair Deal,” which promotes ending corporate handouts, crafting a flatter tax code, passing spending reform, and empowering individuals with the choice to opt out of government-run entitlement programs.

To kick off the Executive Branch Review Project, Sen. Mike Lee and Federalist Society founder and Vice ChairmanDavid McIntosh host a conference call at 4 p.m. to prompt a national debate about whether there has been an uptick in regulatory activity and the consequences surrounding it. http://bit.ly/14pk0kK For the dial-in number, please amorris@crcpublicrelations.com or call 703.683.5004 x123.

SUNDAY, SUNDAY, SUNDAY

– Gabby Giffords will lobby for gun control on Capitol Hill this week. “We’re going to be on Capitol Hill,” her husband, Mark Kelly, said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” “We’re going to be continuing to push for this extended background check bill and hopefully we’ll get it out of the Senate and over to the House.” Ginger Gibson for POLITICO:  http://politi.co/Zs8HQZ

– Sen. Marco Rubio to Jay-Z: Get informed: “Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), who is of Cuban descent, says Jay-Z, who just visited Cuba, should get up to speed on the issues. ‘Jay-Z needs to get informed,’ Rubio said Sunday on ABC’s ‘This Week.’ ‘One of his heroes is Che Guevara. Che Guevara was a racist. Che Guevara was a racist that wrote extensively about the superiority of white Europeans over people of African descent, so he should inform himself on the guy that he’s propping up.’” http://politi.co/17d3foq

Former Sen. Scott Brown (R-Mass.) said “nothing’s off the table” when asked about a possible New Hampshire Senate bid, The Hill’s Cameron Joseph reports: http://bit.ly/ZVMyt9

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) had no comment on a possible New York mayoral bid by former Rep. Anthony Weiner, writes The Hill’s Kevin Bogardus: http://bit.ly/137a1vs

EYEING MAYOR’S RACE, WEINER RELEASES ISSUES BOOKLET — Michael M. Grynbaum reports for the NYT: “As he seeks to extend the discussion about a possible candidacy for mayor — and shift attention away from the online sex-messaging scandal that cost him his Congressional seat — Anthony D. Weiner released a 21-page policy booklet on Sunday that he described as a blueprint for keeping New York City ‘the capital of the middle class.’ The document, named ‘Keys to the City,’ was largely drawn from a booklet of the same title, theme, and format that he distributed five years ago, in anticipation of a mayoral bid in 2009 that he later abandoned. Mr. Weiner, who said the report was intended merely to ‘generate some discussion,’ did expand on his old ideas and added a few new ones, including a city-run single-payer health care program; a requirement that sex offenders wear GPS tags for easy tracking; and a British House of Commons-style ‘question time’ for New York City’s mayor.” http://nyti.ms/12d6ehe

CYBERSECURITY: CONGRESS’ NEW OLD FIGHT – Tony Romm writes for the hometown paper: “Battling rogue hackers and digital spies — it’s precisely the sort of cutting-edge challenge that typically confounds Congress. But the cybersecurity debate about to begin in the House this week is merely a more modern take on an old political fight: a classic lobbying battle set against the backdrop of a post-Sept. 11 struggle between privacy and security. Virtually all of Washington believes the government and industry should exchange data about new cyberthreats — not unlike regulators in the not-too-distant past who shared a desire to find new methods of preventing terrorism. In both debates, however, it’s always been about the details. And on cybersecurity, Congress, the White House, private companies and interest groups just don’t see eye to eye. Each side is lobbying hard to shape the final product as regulators realize it’s difficult to safeguard civil liberties while thwarting the sort of attacks that might darken a city or disrupt Wall Street trading.” http://politi.co/10WcCa1

CONGRESS SCALES BACK STOCK ACT, BLOCKS ONLINE POSTINGS FOR AIDES, STAFFERS – Seung Min Kim reports for POLITICO: “Congress has quickly and quietly moved to considerably scale back financial disclosure requirements that were mandated by the STOCK Act last year after a report released last month raised security concerns about posting the information online. The House on Friday cleared a bill by voice vote that would exempt congressional aides and executive branch staffers from a requirement that they post financial disclosures online. The requirement would still apply to the president, vice president, lawmakers and congressional candidates and positions that require Senate confirmation. The Senate cleared the legislation, also by unanimous consent, Thursday night.

–“Open government groups are slamming the bill, charging Congress with overreacting to worries that could be addressed with more modest changes to the law. They were especially irked by the decision to remove congressional aides from the requirement to post financial details online — viewing it as a “knee-jerk” reaction to a legitimate security issue involving executive branch officials.” http://politi.co/10VbvZK

LABOR NOMINEE PEREZ FACES TOUGHER GOP SCRUTINY – Evan Perez reports for the Wall Street Journal: “Republican lawmakers are stepping up their challenge to the credibility of President Barack Obama’s labor-secretary nominee, saying testimony he gave congressional investigators was contradicted by other government officials. Democrats counter that Thomas Perez, currently the top civil-rights lawyer at the Justice Department, was doing his job of protecting civil rights. The dueling messages come in reports from the two parties to be released Monday—ahead of confirmation hearings this week—about a deal Mr. Perez helped engineer with St. Paul, Minn. The city agreed to drop a Supreme Court case that civil-rights advocates feared could weaken enforcement of housing-discrimination law. In exchange, the Justice Department declined to join two unrelated private lawsuits involving the city’s housing program. Part of the controversy is fueled by emails and documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal that appear to show Mr. Perez trying to keep his role in the St. Paul deal and its full terms from becoming public. Those documents have been cited by GOP lawmakers who allege that Mr. Perez, a political appointee, was overruling career lawyers who had made opposite recommendations. Mr. Perez told congressional investigators in March that he was attempting to expedite handling of the matter, not trying to keep certain aspects secret.” http://on.wsj.com/119NblA

JOE MILLER EXPLORING SECOND SENATE RUN – Kyle Trygstad reports for Roll Call: “Joe Miller, the tea-party-backed Alaska Republican who lost a 2010 Senate race, announced on Sunday that he is launching an exploratory committee as he considers another Senate campaign. The announcement comes just two days after first-term Democratic Sen. Mark Begich announced raising almost $ 1 million in the first fundraising quarter of the cycle. It also comes after a tumultuous week at the state Republican Party, which ousted yet another chairman. ‘For several months now, my wife and I have engaged in serious reflection about our family, Alaska, and the state of our nation,’ Miller said in an email to supporters. ‘After consultation with our political advisers, trusted friends, and many of our 2010 volunteers, we have decided to test the waters for a 2014 US Senate run.’ In a full statement posted to his website, Miller asks for donations and states that he is attempting to determine whether ‘grassroots Republicans’ will ‘step up and join us in the fight for freedom.’” http://bit.ly/16XPMmj

FORMER OHIO REP. CHARLIE WILSON DEAD AT 70 – Ellen Jan Kleinerman writes for The Plain Dealer: “Former U.S. Rep. Charlie Wilson died Sunday in a Florida hospital following complications associated with a stroke that he suffered in February.  Wilson, 70, died with his family by his side, according to a spokesman from his office.  The Democrat represented Ohio’s 6th Congressional district. ‘Throughout his extraordinary life, Congressman Wilson was motivated by a desire to serve his country and a passion for the causes most important to the constituents of Southeast and East Ohio,’ family members said in a statement.  Wilson was elected to the Ohio House in 1996 where he served until 2004 when he was elected to the Ohio Senate. He won a write-in campaign in 2006 filling the congressional seat vacated by Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland. He lost the seat in 2010 to Republican Bill Johnson.” http://bit.ly/116CBKN

FRIDAY’S TRIVIA WINNER – Ross Kapilian was first to correctly answer that Franklin Delano Roosevelt was the first president to appear on television. It occurred at the opening of the New York World’s Fair on April 30, 1939.

TODAY’S TRIVIA – Ross Kapilian has today’s question: Which professional sports league has had the most representation in Congress, and who were the players in that league? First to correctly answer gets a mention in the next day’s Huddle. Email me at swong@politico.com.

GET HUDDLE emailed to your Blackberry, iPhone or other mobile device each morning. Just enter your email address where it says “Sign Up.” http://www.politico.com/huddle/

** This Thursday join Zillow, the Progressive Policy Institute and the American Action Forum for a FORUM ON THE FUTURE OF HOUSING: What’s next for housing demand, mortgage finance and recovery. The forum will bring together an esteemed group of national real estate experts, influencers and policy makers to discuss the dynamics that will drive the market in 2013 and beyond.

Keynotes from the Hon. Jeff Merkley and the Hon. Johnny Isakson; panels on mortgage finance and the future of housing demand moderated by WSJ’s Nick Timiraos and CNBC’s Diana Olick.

When and where: Thursday, April 18 from 8:00 am-12:30 pm. Knight Conference Center at the Newseum.

FREE registration: http://zlw.re/ZillowForum.

POLITICO – Top 10 – The Huddle

TAX DAY, Durbin fundraising signals run for reelection, Schism in gun lobby over Manchin-Toomey bill, Rubio"s TV blitz, Giffords on Hill, Joe Miller explores second Senate bid

Obama delivers "Democrat Classic," Symbolism of SOTU guests, Shootout nearly upstages Obama, Rubio on GMA: "I needed water," Rand serves up red meat, Hagel advances, Lew on Hill at 10 a.m.

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(swong@politico.com or @scottwongDC)

STATE OF THE UNION: OBAMA DELIVERS A ‘DEMOCRAT CLASSIC’ – Glenn Thrush writes for the hometown paper: “Four years after his first State of the Union, Obama rolled out a series of vintage proposals from his party’s amply stocked policy cupboard — a $ 1.75-an-hour hike in the federal minimum wage, an ambitious plan to expand public preschool education to all kids, reintroduction of a $ 50 billion infrastructure plan, and resurrection of climate change legislation. Taken as a whole, it marked the latest step in a clear effort by Obama to nudge the nation’s politics to the center-left, a shift from the center-right politics of Ronald Reagan that have dominated American political life for more than three decades. …

– “‘It is our unfinished task to restore the basic bargain that built this country — the idea that if you work hard and meet your responsibilities, you can get ahead, no matter where you come from, what you look like, or who you love,’ he said as he began a speech that lived up to its billing as a bookend to his progressive inaugural address three weeks ago. ‘It is our unfinished task to make sure that this government works on behalf of the many, and not just the few; that it encourages free enterprise, rewards individual initiative, and opens the doors of opportunity to every child across this great nation of ours.’ …

– “Over and again in the hourlong speech, Obama cast himself as champion of the working classes and portrayed Republicans as protectors of the wealthy and powerful … Obama’s more immediate aim was to back Republicans into a corner on the upcoming fight over $ 1.2 trillion in budget cuts triggered on March 1 by the sequester by harnessing public opinion for his own approach — through fewer budget cuts than Republicans want, a more modest approach to reforming runway entitlement programs and a greater emphasis on raising new tax revenues from corporations and the wealthy.” http://politi.co/Vfs5SB

WaPo, A1, “State of the symbolism: Speech guests help put human faces on rhetoric,” By Ed O’Keefe, Emily Heil and David A. Fahrenthold: “There was a teacher who’d survived three gunshot wounds. A congresswoman who’d lived through an assassination attempt. The grieving parents of slain teenagers. And, a few feet away, a fierce pro-gun rock-and-roller who said he’d wind up ‘dead or in jail’ if the president was re­elected. During many State of the Union speeches, the House’s viewing gallery is filled mostly with congressional spouses, lucky staffers and visiting donors. But Tuesday was different. The normally staid gallery was filled, instead, with ordinary Americans whose unordinary lives made them political symbols. In many cases, what they symbolized was the toll of American gun violence. There were 35 people who had been touched by tragedy, whom Democrats had brought to represent the real stakes of the gun-control debate playing out on the floor below.”  http://wapo.st/VUgUfl

SHOOTOUT NEARLY UPSTAGES OBAMA – Howard Kurtz writes for The Daily Beast: “President Obama used his State of the Union to pivot back to the economy, saying he wants to protect ‘senior citizens’ and ‘working families’ from bearing the brunt of budget-cutting, but the Washington ritual was nearly overshadowed by a California crime drama. By the time Obama called for generating enough jobs for ‘a thriving middle class’ on Tuesday night, he found himself sharing the television stage as the cable news networks blanketed a shootout at Big Bear with accused cop-killer Christopher Dorner that left one police officer dead and another wounded. It was a split-screen moment reminiscent of Bill Clinton delivering his 1997 State of the Union during the verdict in O.J. Simpson’s civil trial—and all the more surreal since Obama talked about gun violence after the Big Bear cabin in which Dorner was hiding went up in flames.” http://thebea.st/X7HamF

RUBIO REBUTTAL: NO FORTUNATE SON – Jonathan Martin writes for POLITICO: “His desperate need for a drink of water created the immediate headline, but Sen. Marco Rubio’s (R-Fla.) much-anticipated speech Tuesday night had a very serious intent: It was as much an exercise in erasing Mitt Romney’s legacy on the Republican Party as it was a traditional response to President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address. The selection of Rubio to speak for his party marked the latest, and perhaps most overt, step in the GOP’s rehabilitation project since Election Day, an effort to repackage its identity without altering its policies. And at four separate moments in his remarks, Rubio went to great lengths to get the message across: The GOP isn’t the party of rich white guys.

–“Right from the start, the 41-year-old Cuban-American stated bluntly that he was no senator’s (or governor’s) son. ‘I didn’t inherit any money from them,’ Rubio said of his parents. ‘But I inherited something far better — the real opportunity to accomplish my dreams. … Mr. President, I still live in the same working-class neighborhood I grew up in … My neighbors aren’t millionaires. They’re retirees who depend on Social Security and Medicare. They’re workers who have to get up early tomorrow morning and go to work to pay the bills. They’re immigrants, who came here because they were stuck in poverty in countries where the government dominated the economy.’” http://politi.co/YcMNBf

RUBIO’S WATER BREAK: THE GULP HEARD ‘ROUND THE WORLD – Joel Siegel writes for the New York Daily News: “Thirsty for attention? Or just thirsty? … It was supposed to be the moment that propelled Rubio into the top tier of potential presidential candidates. Instead, social media exploded with jokes after Rubio awkwardly paused, reached for a bottle of Poland Spring water and took a swig to douse a case of dry mouth. ,,, The Florida senator seemed to have a sense of humor about the viral moment. Late Tuesday night he tweeted a photo of the attention-grabbing bottle.” http://nydn.us/XzOlTL

LET ME EXPLAIN – “I needed water, what am I going to do?” Rubio told ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Wednesday. “God has a funny way of reminding us we’re human.” http://politi.co/XKomeg

GIFs were online within minutes of Rubio’s aqua lunge – http://bit.ly/XKhCx1

TWITTER TRAFFIC – @PaulBegala: Marco Rubio: the man you want to have a desperate gulp of water with.

@AntDeRosa: Stay thirsty, Americans – Marco Rubio

@samsteinhp: Jesus walked on water. Rubio drank it #saviors (ok, done)

@darth: OK RT @jakebeckman: Someone photoshop Rubio on the poster for The Water Boy cc @darth thx pic.twitter.com/XG18YRGT

In an attempt to poke fun at himself, Rubio tweeted out a pic of his water bottle — @marcorubio: #GOPResponse #SOTU #gop #tcot pic.twitter.com/3hxtgdbP

And one of his advisers scored the prized possession: @dtoddharris: I am now the proud owner of the most famous bottle of water in American politics. pic.twitter.com/wkzaLSlX

RUBIO ROLLS OUT SCHOOL VOUCHER BILL – Marc Caputo writes on A1 of the Miami Herald: “U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio immediately followed his rebuttal to the president’s State of the Union address Tuesday night by releasing a ‘school-choice’ bill to allow taxpayers to subsidize private-school education for poor kids. By putting legislation where his mouth is, Rubio wanted to reinforce the theme of his speech — that conservative policy is good for the poor and working class.” http://hrld.us/XzKCFW

THE RAP ON RUBIO – New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd wasn’t impressed by Rubio’s performance – or his fluency in rap music: “Gangsta rap used to be a reliable issue for politicians, but they were denouncing it. Now Senator Marco Rubio of Florida is praising it — and right at the moment when Republicans are pushing the argument that guns don’t kill people; it’s a culture glorifying guns and violence that kills people.  The ubiquitous 41-year-old — who’s on the cover of Time as ‘The Republican Savior’ — looked as if he needed some saving himself Tuesday night as he delivered the party’s response to the State of the Union address in English (and Spanish).

– “He seemed parched, shaky and sweaty, rubbing his face and at one point lunging off-camera to grab a bottle of water. He needed some of the swagger reflected on the Spotify playlist he recently released, featuring Tupac’s ‘Changes,’ as well as Flo Rida, Pitbull, The Sugar Hill Gang, Kanye, Big Sean, devoted Obama supporters Jay-Z and Will.I.Am, and a Foster the People song about ‘a cowboy kid’ who finds a gun in his dad’s closet and goes after ‘all the other kids with the pumped up kicks.’” http://nyti.ms/XzKp5r

RAND’S RESPONSE FULL OF RED MEAT – James Hohmann reports for POLITICO: “Rand Paul tackled gun control, drone strikes, immigration and — first and foremost — spending cuts in a blistering ‘tea party’ response to the President Barack Obama’s State of the Union address. ‘We will not let the liberals tread on the Second Amendment,’ the Kentucky senator declared Tuesday night after Florida Sen. Marco Rubio finished delivering the official GOP response. The libertarian-leaning Republican then alluded to the controversy over the drone strike Obama ordered against Anwar al-Awlaki. ‘We cannot and will not allow any president to act as if he were a king,’ Paul said. ‘We will not tolerate secret lists of American citizens who can be killed without trial.’ Rubio and Paul are both likely to run for president in 2016, but they played to very different bases Tuesday. Paul delivered a wide-ranging speech aimed at activists, chock full of criticism for both parties.” http://politi.co/15bSkx6

GOOD WEDNESDAY MORNING, FEBRUARY 13, 2013, and welcome to The Huddle, your play-by-play preview of the day’s congressional news. Send tips, suggestions, comments, complaints and corrections to swong@politico.com. If you don’t already, please follow me on Twitter @scottwongDC.

My new followers include but are not limited to @KimberlyRailey and @RepJerryNadler.

TODAY IN CONGRESS – The Senate meets at 10 a.m. and could consider the nomination of former Sen. Chuck Hagel to be secretary of Defense. The Senate Finance Committee holds a hearing to consider the nomination of Jack Lew to be Treasury secretary, 10 a.m. in Dirksen 215.

The House is also in at 10 a.m. with first and last votes expected between 1 and 2 p.m. on the Federal Disaster Assistance Nonprofit Fairness Act and Hydropower Regulatory Efficiency Act.

AROUND THE HILL – House Democratic Caucus Chairman Xavier Becerra, Vice Chairman Joseph Crowley, and Rep. Mike Thompson hold a post-caucus media availability at 10 a.m. in the  HVC-210 alcove. Also at 10 a.m., Speaker John Boehner and other GOP leaders hold a post-conference meeting availability in the RNC lobby.

Sens. Barbara Mikulski, Ben Cardin, Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand speak about the Harret Tubman Historic Park legislation at 10:30 a.m. in SVC 208. Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and Whip Steny Hoyer speak on the Violence Against Women Act at 1 p.m. in HVC Studio A. Sens. Jon Tester and Rep. Chellie Pingree speak on legislation to help survivors of military sexual trauma at 1 p.m. in S-115. Sen. Jack Reed speaks on consumer protection at 2:30 p.m. in the Senate Studio.

Both Democratic and Republican leaders said they will dedicate a statue of civil rights icon Rosa Parks in Statuary Hall on Feb. 27.

BOEHNER’S SENATE FIRST STRATEGY – Jake Sherman and Manu Raju write for POLITICO: “The same House Republican majority that spent the entire past two years haranguing Senate Democrats for ignoring piles of legislation has a new strategy. Let the Senate act first — on nearly everything. Whether it’s an overhaul of the nation’s immigration laws, renewing the Violence Against Women Act or retooling gun regulations after mass shootings across the nation, House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) is perfectly fine with sitting on his hands. The House GOP’s days of incessantly repealing President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul are gone, as are their bills to eliminate obscure regulations.

– “This ‘Senate first’ strategy allows a divided House to sit back and watch Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) struggle to wrangle votes in a chamber filled with vulnerable Democrats up for reelection in 2014. But it also carries substantial risks. If Senate Republicans join with Democrats and push through major elements of Obama’s agenda, House Republicans could become isolated if they seek to dilute or block the legislative push.” http://politi.co/12LlDam

The NYT’s Jeremy Peters reports: HAGEL NOM CLEARS COMMITTEE, BUT THINGS GET PERSONAL – “After a combative two-hour debate that tested the bounds of Senate collegiality, the Armed Services Committee on Tuesday approved the nomination of former Senator Chuck Hagel as defense secretary on a sharply partisan vote. The 14-to-11 vote to send the nomination to the Senate floor with a favorable recommendation was the latest step in a process that has deepened festering hostilities between Congressional Republicans and the White House and has exposed stark disagreements over wartime foreign policy. After the vote, Republicans threatened to try to filibuster the nomination of Mr. Hagel … while Democrats were promising to force a vote of the full Senate as early as Wednesday night.

– “At times, the meeting slipped into an unusually accusatory and bitter back-and-forth, with Republicans like Ted Cruz, a freshman senator from Texas, going as far as to suggest that Mr. Hagel had accepted money from nations that oppose American interests. … Senator Bill Nelson of Florida and other Democrats countered by saying that Republicans had unfairly questioned the integrity of both Mr. Hagel, a two-time Purple Heart recipient, and had undermined the work of the normally bipartisan committee itself. ‘Senator Cruz has gone over the line,’ Mr. Nelson said. ‘He basically has impugned the patriotism of the nominee.’ Senator John McCain, Republican of Arizona, who is opposing his former colleague, also bristled at the attacks on Mr. Hagel, saying that ‘no one on this committee should at any time impugn his character or his integrity.’” http://nyti.ms/XKsjjg

MENENDEZ’S BUSINESS AS USUAL APPROACH – John Bresnahan and Manu Raju report for POLITICO: “Embattled Sen. Robert Menendez is throwing himself into his new job as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee as he struggles to deflect attention from his own personal problems. Menendez briefed fellow Democrats in a closed-door session on Tuesday about North Korea’s surprise nuclear test, an issue that has rattled the U.S. and foreign governments. He also met with Shehrbano Rehman, the Pakistani ambassador to the United States, to talk about American policy in Afghanistan. On Wednesday, Menendez will have coffee with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. Over the weekend, Menendez is leading a congressional delegation to Afghanistan and Pakistan. …

–“At the same time, Menendez has been quietly meeting with some of his Democratic colleagues and party leaders to assure them that the scandal he’s embroiled in — which centers on his ties to Florida eye surgeon Salomon Melgen, a close friend and big Democratic donor — won’t interfere with his ability to do his new job. … Yet both Democrats and Republicans — mainly in private — are wondering whether the New Jersey Democrat can succeed with his ‘business-as-usual’ approach to the scandal, which has threatened to derail his once-promising political career.” http://politi.co/WlzcYP

– Fox News reports that Menendez took an undisclosed trip on Salomon’s plane back in 2008 to attend a charity golf tournament. http://fxn.ws/YcPxyo

NUGENT: I HAVE MORE SUPPORT THAN OBAMA – Kate Nocera reports for POLITICO: “Never one to shy away from speaking his mind, rocker Ted Nugent arrived on Capitol Hill for the State of the Union speech and promised to keep quiet. And he kept his promise, sitting silently in a corner of the visitors’ gallery above the House floor. Nugent — a gun advocate and guest of Rep. Steve Stockman (R-Texas) — was so quiet, in fact, he didn’t even applaud once during the entire speech. … Nugent said the people who sat with him during the speech were those who ‘lived by the same logic as the Nugent family.’ ‘People of the military, people of law enforcement, small business owners — everyone was in agreement with Uncle Ted,’ he said. As he left the gallery, Nugent was swarmed by fans wanting photos — and even one woman who yelled ‘Run for president, Ted!’ ‘You hear that?’ he said to a reporter. ‘I have more support than the President at his own speech.’” http://politi.co/14S5vCn

TUESDAY’S TRIVIA WINNER – Aaron Merkin was first to correctly answer that “Yesterdays,” composed in 1933, is the popular song standard that includes the lyric: “Days I knew as happy sweet sequestered days.”

TODAY’S TRIVIA – Which former U.S. senator formed a foundation that raised funds to complete the stalled “Mountains and Clouds” sculpture that hangs in the Hart Senate Building? First to correctly answer gets a mention in the next day’s Huddle. Email me at swong@politico.com.

GET HUDDLE emailed to your Blackberry, iPhone or other mobile device each morning. Just enter your email address where it says “Sign Up.” http://www.politico.com/huddle/

POLITICO – Top 10 – Huddle

Obama delivers "Democrat Classic," Symbolism of SOTU guests, Shootout nearly upstages Obama, Rubio on GMA: "I needed water," Rand serves up red meat, Hagel advances, Lew on Hill at 10 a.m.